rsb502

Ha, I figured that would stir some chit, ol chewy's got a purty good runnin truck I'll say that. I'm not gonna say I couldn't pass em all on the shoulder holding a paddle out the window rowing or anything but......I could!

For what you want to do flux core .030 or .035 in a 140-160amp welder will do fine, I use a friends Hobart 140 with .030 flux on his trailers all the time (saves me from taking my welder down there and him from bringing his trailers here). Welding with flux core wire isn't as pretty as gas shielded but if you slow down and watch the weld puddle like a stick welder and keep your electrode in the puddle long enough to build up a good bead the spatter goes way down and it can be controlled better, just think of it as a stick welder and go slow and watch your puddle. I actually dime weld with solid wire most of the time and with flux I back and forth it across the seam pausing at either end long enough to get penetration then pull the weld puddle thru the middle of your run to keep it hot on both sides. just my two cents.

I was told to replace both due to thread stretch on the hub and never ever ever re-use a nut on something that takes a lot of torque on a Detroit the bolts are cheap compared to doing it again. I bet youll like torquing the head on that one, it goes to 200 or 250 I cant remember which right now in three stages, your arm will be killing you if you do it all at one time(38 bolts I think?). I used three different color paint pens to mark my head bolts to make sure I got em all one color for each torque step. Good luck with the rebuild and make sure the liner protrusion is right if not youll get a head gasket issue pretty quick its a pain in the butt to do but when you use your liner inserter keep pressure on the liner and use a straight edge and caliper to check it, they are pretty touchy on the liner fitment, I think I still have some detroit series 60 injector height guages somewhere around here.

Not duck brand anymore I get gorilla tape, it is bad stuff. I have used an underhood welder and all I can say is deal with it when you get to a real welder or get a new bracket. I tried 7018 rods in 3/32, 1/8, and 5/32 the 1/8 Lincoln rods seemed to do best but it was very slow going and not easy to control. Just so ya know I weld at work weekly I have a Lincoln 305D on my truck I use 1/8" 6011 rods for root passes on deep cracks or joints and 5/32 7018 for my cover passes, I use Lincoln Excalibur rods almost exclusively they seem to strike easier than radnor and others. I do like radnor 7018 1/4" for backhoe buckets and large plate stuff they fill fast but I still use a Lincoln for my root pass.

I would guess its probably time to replace the dessicant cartridge in the dryer, when you start getting anything in the tank after the dryer, its a good bet the dryer is ready for some attention. Bendix recommends that all AD-9 and AD-IP style dryers get a purge valve rebuild and a new dessicant cartridge once a year or every 100k whichever comes first. Its overlooked by just about everybody since its out of sight, its out of mind but if you havent gone thru it in a year or two its time, AD9 will run about $120 for a cartridge and a purge valve kit and takes about an hour to do no biggie, just make sure to get the purge valve tight or it will back off and then youll have to do it again. Its also good incurance against ABS and quick release valve issues, those ABS valves dont like contaminants in the air theyll act a fool and youll get an ABS light if they get gummed up. Just my couple pennies there!